Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

I have been busy trying to do too many things. :) my list is still long, and I have several projects nearly finished, partly finished, already gifted. Next year, I hope to start fewer projects, but finish more. Not calling that a resolution exactly, but will give it a good try.

Was going to post a picture of the rug I'm currently working on, but no luck. So will hopefully add it before year's end. Till then will keep pulling loops...

An American Primitive Group has had an ongoing challenge for the last year. Blush, a year and still not finished? Well, my year started off with a hip replacement and recuperation until April, more or less. The theme was "Tree Sale"  my rug was a bit ambitious at nearly a square yard.  It contains a few features that really make me happy. This will be a family rug, and it has my husband's old truck, my birth sign constellation as Comet Ison was making it's way toward our Sun. The design melded together childhood memories and those as a mom and grandma too. So not really one memory.

Christmas trees are really more of a scent memory to me.  The crisp cold walk through trees outside the grocery store, a longer walk around the local tree lot, or an out and out treasure hunt on a tree farm. Dark or daytime, with mingled scents of branches, sap from fresh cut trees, a slight breeze, or wind in your face. Snow gently falling, or a sunny day...

I wish all of you dear readers the happiest of Decembers, from buying a tree through decorating it. Memories of bye gone years, with parents and grandparents. The sounds of giggling children, chairs scraping on the kitchen floor, the doorbell as others arrive, carols of the season...

Hark the Herald Angels Sing!

Celebrate the season where the days are shorter until Mid December, then slowly the light returns. Yule Log or Christmas tree,  Festival of Lights, Kwanza, or just the joy of family.

There is NOTHING more certain than CHANGE~

Today I am going to show you some WONDERFUL handmade items I received from Ginger Jackson, back in May. They are lovely, and she deserved to be thanked much more quickly, but like everyone else, life has been hectic around here.

Ginger and I have been in more than one group, this swap was for An American Primitive Gathering.
One of our members suggested having a swap in May, and I got spoiled ROTTEN! Ginger blogs at
http://primitivesbythelightofthemoon.blogspot.com/ and our swap was going on the week of the two ginormous tornadoes in Oklahoma.

My picture taking skills aren't the best, so let me give you a guided tour of the photo. Surrounding most of the picture is a lovely handmade scarf, in creams, taupes, and browns. Starting in the upper left corner are some handcut wool pennies, the lovely card got buried at the bottom of the bounty, but its sentiment is one I fully believe in, that friends are the flowers of our life. Then there is a gorgeous needlepunch prim flower, just right for hanging on a cabinet, or even a wrist! :) Next to that are what you might think is a blue bird appliqued on a sunflower. The sunflower is a mug rug, although I'm mostly drinking iced tea this summer! The bluebird is a pin which our granddaughter has been eyeing in a rather wishful way... there is also a pincushion or mugmat with hearts, stuffed with allspice mixture, which I will use this fall when HOT tea or coffee sounds good again. Last and certainly not least is a handmade Penny Rug. If you click into the picture you may be able to see the perfection of her stitches, and how perfect the foundation wool was as a choice.

Pati Jane and Ginger offer lovely items for sale in their Etsy shop Called PrairieMoonPrimitives.

I am out of my running in circles mode, and getting back to a regular life. That is fabulous news for me, and as a result I've been able to finish and list a rug I recently finished at Ebay. If it doesn't sell on that listing, it will move on over to my Etsy shop. But this blog is about my life, not a blog for selling things.

The design is one I got from Linda Smith who gave me permission to sell her design, and I truly do appreciate it! I had lots of fun hooking this rug. It isn't truly primitive, because I used some fancy fibers to add some POP to the fireworks.  When I was working on it, at hooking circle, it got some great comments from friends, as the fireworks really do catch your eye.

Spinning in place

Just one of those days, when life seems to be spinning in place. Not head spinning, sick to your stomach spinning, just not going forward spinning.

In the few months that I've been away, lot of changes have occured. I have a new hip replacement, our granddaughter has had her birthday again, and I've even driven the car a few times. I'm not on pain meds now, other than the ones anyone can buy over the counter, and so lots more aches and pains than a month ago, but just the normal ones, you can mostly ignore.

I've cooked some, but still more the now and again cook, than getting most of the meals. I do plan to continue to diet this year. Nearly the same 50 off that I had the day of the surgery, so not really having more than the same task that was ahead of me last year. Except that this year, I can walk, and know that losing 50 pounds more or less will be a matter of keeping my focus. So that is a big change. Last year at this point, I was hoping and trying, and reforming bad habits. But unsure as to whether it would result in the change so badly needed to my skeleton, or end up with me is a hoverround or some other type of wheeled vehicle like a wheelchair.

I  haven't hooked in several months, but have a couple of finished rugs, I haven't shared yet. Unfortunately, I also haven't take a picture of either of them, so that won't happen today either. Still feeling that spinning my wheels and getting nowhere feeling, but it too will pass.

The hook has been calling my name, after spending more time on a sewing machine lately finishing up some small projects. A couple of baby quilts for family babies, that are due in the next couple of months. Just little utility quilts, one needs so many things with a new baby.

My best things to share will be a hexagon star I hand pieced, and some progress pictures of the hexagons I have pieced for a quilt made with our granddaughter's baby clothes. But no pictures of them on this computer...so guess I'll quit for today.

The Eaton Edge

I Love Pinterest! This morning, I stumbled across a pin that linked me to a 9 minute demonstration of Doris Eaton, showing how to do "the Eaton Edge". I'd read references to it as a simple and effective way to finish rugs.

After watching the video, I can see where this could be a favorite way for finishing in the future.


http://m.youtube.com/#/watch?v=zR-ebWIJd_Y&feature=player_embedded&desktop_uri=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DzR-ebWIJd_Y%26feature%3Dplayer_embedded

She mentions that this technique helps the edges of the rug wear more slowly. You do the prep work for the Eaton Edge before hooking your rug. 

• You need to sew tape around the edges of the rug, using a zipper foot. 
• Start by hooking from the underside of the rug first.
• Hook a second row (from the front) and continue on hooking the remainder of the rug. 
• Turn tape to back and secure it to the rug foundation
• The first row of hooking done from the back, will fill the tape, giving it a corded appearance.

Efficient and long lasting - who could ask for anything more?

Back to Blogging with the New Year!

Although, my hip surgery is much closer than my last post, I'm finally back, to wish all my followers. Hooking friends, and fellow wanderers, Happy 2013! Blogspot has changed since my last visit, and most of my creative oomph is stored on my computer I still can't use, so this may be rather grim looking for a time or two. My next stop will be for a background! Although this sparse look is definitely about all I can do on my own, the power of the Internet is that it makes all of us so much more, than just our self.

I've finished a new rug, and will be listing it soon. Hoped to get it listed last night, but a full day of granddaughter, no nap, fixing dinner for a small family dinner, and still a bum hip, equalled a crash 3 hour nap that also made it possible for me to see in the actual new year at our house. :)

The countdown to my actual surgery will begin today. In a couple of days, I have my cleared for surgery doctor's appointment. Assuming nothing arises as a problem that requires attention before that it will be exactly 4 weeks until the Tuesday that is the first day of the Rest of my Life. Since this is my second hip replacement, I know there are challenges ahead, but with belief and sticking to it, a renewal of my last rejuvenation is not only possible, but probable. I have lots of living left in my heart and mind, so a little longer wait, but things to do and places to go!